Abundance

"He was obedient to and at one with nature and the four seasons."
— Basho on Saigyo, quoted in Sam Hamill, introduction to 'Narrow Road to the Interior'

February. People falling ill, cancer striking closer and closer, bad news all around, a lot of time spent in hospitals, and more to come.

Meanwhile....

The rain trees are bare, the new leaves budding like hope at their fingertips. Against the sky, delicate filigree silhouettes, their branches flowing out like water frozen in motion. And on the ground, beautiful intricate shadows - the earth, and the sky, everything a canvas.

The Hongai leaves have turned golden, some trees have shed, others already shining in the sun, resplendent, their small translucent oily leaves as stunning as flowers, green and red.

The mahogany leaves are falling, their seed pods breaking to release the twirling twirling winged brown seeds scattered on our streets.

The yellow tabebuias have started blooming, quietly, quietly, filling up the bare branches, until one fine day they stop you in your tracks.

The pink tabebuias, slightly early, blooming on some streets already in bunches of ethereal softness.

The trees full of birds building nests, so that their babies are born in summer, rich with ripe fruits and insects.

The white-cheeked barbets can be heard loud and clear above the chattering parakeets this season.

The wind, that has come to help shake the dry leaves off the trees, ringing my chimes all day, ringing in peace.

And the migratory rosy starlings back at my window, chirping away in large flocks, adding their music to my mornings, and flying up in murmurations once in a while. They are early this year, but well, I am not complaining. :)

The universe throws beauty at us, lavishly, a thousand pearls of abundance, whatever is going on in our lives.

Oh, not to be swine, but to be grateful....to take what is offered so generously, and to be glad, and to be consoled, even for a while.


Light, Light: https://goo.gl/photos/Gmyeqsict4sbMiro8

Astonishment: https://goo.gl/photos/jTfQLRZN7WewQGvA7

Hongai: https://goo.gl/photos/Kh7narkor7KcgXGS8